Tag: Assisted living center

Choosing an Assisted Living for the Mentally Ill

Assisted Living is usually associated with senior care, but it can also be treatment care for adults who have mental illnesses. These centers provide special care, along with housing, support, and treatment under a residential setting.

Things to Consider
Oftentimes, the family makes a firm decision to recognize the need for residential care. The family might have lost control over behavior over the mentally ill or personal efforts are just not enough. Whatever reason for transmission, there are some things you need to consider when choosing an assisted living center:

  • Psychiatric Needs
    Not all assisted living centers specializes the treatment for certain mental illnesses. So, look for one that concentrates and specializes on your family member’s needs. You can always discuss with your health care advisor regarding their specific needs.
  • Location
    The most preferred facility is the one nearest your home. However, mental health experts tell otherwise. They believe that the farther the home, the more progress a person can get and finding their one’s self again.
  • Features
    It is of great importance to shop around and look for facilities as many as you can. Having more options can make way for comparison and better decision-making. Make sure to know the features of each facilities and if they can cater the specific needs of your family member.
  • Cost
    Health insurance usually covers cost for treatment and housing in assisted living centers, while others do not. Depending on your insurance policy, you can ask them if they can provide financial assistance. If you have no insurance, you can find a rich source of referrals for affordable treatment from your State’s health centers. In special cases where mental illness is due to abuse, several government programs offer financial aid.

The Assisted Living Facility

As your parent or loved one get old, it becomes undeniably difficult to care for them knowing that you already have your own family to take care also. You might be considering getting help at home from professional health care providers. However, this might be a very expensive option for you. Another option will be bringing them to assisted living centers.

There are many assisted living facilities in the United States who provides the best geriatric nursing care. Most of these institutions have employed professionals like practical nurses and registered nurses. It is an advantage for old people who have no one to take care of them full time. Assisted living centers guarantee that your loved ones will be taken care of.

It may be a very stressful experience to place your parent or loved ones in a home care facility. This will sometimes put you in a dilemma whether or not it is the best decision. However, before choosing the right assisted living facility for you, check on your options:

Choosing the right assisted living center for you.

There are many assisted living facilities in the United States. It is important to consider the facilities that are nearest you. Your loved ones will appreciate it more if you can still find the time to visit them. It is best that you choose a facility that will be accessible to you.

Another important matter to consider is the facility of the institution. Knowing that the center has facilities to provide the care that your loved ones need will certainly give you the assurance that they are in good hands.

Above all, and the most important matter to consider are the people who work in the nursing home facility. You will feel more at ease and worry-free when you know that the people who you trusted your loved one to, gives them the best care that they need. Choose an assisted living center that gives a certain atmosphere that is comfortable, friendly, and caring. Look at the staff of these centers and try to evaluate if you can confidently entrust your loved one to them.

Myths with Assisted Living Centers

When you are about to choose a senior care option for your loved one, you perceive ideas about the assisted living centers. Your perceptions and ideas are brought by the media who highlighted the negative accounts about these facilities. A single bad story about a living center will surely affect everything. The media tends to focus on the bad side of things. Not everything you heard on the news are true for all. There are good senior care facilities that have quality care services.

To help you decide, let’s talk about the common myths you’ve heard about assisted living centers. First myth: Assisted living centers won’t accept patients with urinary incontinence and those who are in a wheelchair.

It is true that patients must be able to move on their own, but wheelchairs are not prohibited, as long as they are able to transfer from the bed to the wheelchair or vice versa with the help of another person. Patients who needs two people to move or can no longer bear weight are not accepted. This is because the assisted living centers are not licensed to provide such services.

Patients who experience urinary incontinence are typically accepted as long as their situation can be supervised with toilet scheduling, using incontinence products and reminders on a constant basis. If bowel incontinence turns out to be an issue and cannot be handled properly, this may require an alternative care setting as the circumstance may affect other patients.

Another myth is that Medicare will take care of all expenses in the assisted living centers. Medicare does not cover non-skilled care services like assistance with activities of daily living, specifically bathing, medication management, dressing, toileting and transportation. The Medicare cover skilled nursing services, however in most cases, the assisted living centers prefers private pay (cash) or long term insurances.